All posts filed under: Gender

On our way home from lunch earlier today, I was telling my husband about my new job and then I realised that in all my past and current employments (I have been working for about 3 years now), the only managers I’ve reported to, served under, and worked with have all been females. Don’t get me wrong; I don’t have a beef with reporting to a female manager but I’ve never reported to and worked for a male manager, hence I have no idea what it feels like (though I get some friends telling me that working for a male manager doesn’t necessarily mean it’s better either!). But I know exactly what it feels like to work for a female manager. Women are women, and they have their follies. Some would be menopausal and cry at the tiniest bit of dissent. Some will rule you like an iron lady. Some prefer male managers because they are less emotional and more rational, while others prefer to work for female managers because they are more compassionate and understanding. Females Over Males According …

Originally posted on The Uppity Negro: It’s time for a new black male aesthetic. Especially one that captures decolonized postmodern black masculinity as well as one that has ontologically transcendent capabilities. In simpler terms, an aesthetic that allows for black masculinity to not be defined by archaic norms in the realm of fashion, black male-to-male relationships and how one images themselves for the sake of respectability politics. The year 2012 was significant for black male masculinity on several fronts, far too many to discuss here, many of which were around how black men were entering public conversations about black women and black male privilege in social media spheres, to the way that black urban fashion had shed much of its nascent hip hop bagginess trading it in for fitted and skinny jeans, Obama was running for re-election, same-sex marriage in black religious circles was a hot-button topic as the president came out in favor of it, more and more young people were freer to talk about sex and sexuality and at the same time the demographic remained woefully…

Originally posted on Just another millennial living with her parents: I’ll start by saying that the inspiration for writing this came to me when I read this article by The Atlantic, “When are you really an adult?” It’s on my mind a lot. After all, I live with my parents. Unfortunately, I think our culture gets it straight up wrong when it comes to women becoming adults. A gown up woman is what I need to be, or so I’ve heard. If I’m not actively dating anyone, it means I’ve eschewed marriage all together. I’m asexual. I would not be discussing this topic if people were not so damn presumptuous with me on the topic of getting married or having children. Maybe some sense in me a sign of struggle when they look at my tired eyes. The truth is, I am struggling. The difference between their perceptions and my own is that any time I’m “struggling,” it’s because I’m single. It’s like Sesame Street. S for struggle. S for single. They must go together,…

Originally posted on Black Millennials: Jamar Clark was killed execution-style while handcuffed in Minneapolis. Black activists most notably affiliated with the local Black Lives Matter chapter and the local NAACP shut down highways and occupied the 4th police precinct. National media is starting to pick up on the local unrest, especially after white supremacist terrorists shot five Black Lives Matter protestors. In Chicago, video released shows LaQuan McDonald being shot some sixteen times by a white police officer. His murderer has been charged, and thousands are mobilizing. Traditional media is focusing on the clashes between protesters and police, while social media is aflame. The gruesome video (which I admittedly haven’t watched) lives on the pages of many. Heated debate about the discomfiting consumption of Black death and pain is — once again — underway. Not one to homogenize Black murder and resulting unrest, I can’t help but draw striking parallels to Ferguson and Baltimore. From the expansive number of mass mobilizations and frontline energies, to the tweets of solidarity, frenetic live-streaming, and the viciously heavy-handed responses…

Originally posted on The CYCLE: Let me start by saying I feel sorry for my parents! As wierd as it sounds, I do! I follow with this, to be gay in Kenya as in the world you are faced with that tough decision….. “TO COME OUT OR NOT TO!” It’s almost impossible to know how the parents and siblings will react and the extended family at large. So do you risk it and come out, or wait till you are ‘tossed’ out like most People. Now, I feel sorry for my parents because I am made to believe their dreams for me include, getting good education, getting a good job, getting a good man, getting married and getting kids. Unfortunately or fortunately I’m a lesbian, so no men and children are an option. In Kenya, one of the perks of getting married is the part of dowry giving. The man’s family appreciates the woman’s family by giving dowry. As a lesbian, my existence is already illegal, so getting formalized, as in getting married is out…

Originally posted on Devouring Fictions: None of The Above by I.W. Gregorio Publication: April 7, 2015 by Blazer + Bray Summary: A groundbreaking story about a teenage girl who discovers she was born intersex… and what happens when her secret is revealed to the entire school. Incredibly compelling and sensitively told, None of the Above is a thought-provoking novel that explores what it means to be a boy, a girl, or something in between. What if everything you knew about yourself changed in an instant? When Kristin Lattimer is voted homecoming queen, it seems like another piece of her ideal life has fallen into place. She’s a champion hurdler with a full scholarship to college and she’s madly in love with her boyfriend. In fact, she’s decided that she’s ready to take things to the next level with him. But Kristin’s first time isn’t the perfect moment she’s planned—something is very wrong. A visit to the doctor reveals the truth: Kristin is intersex, which means that though she outwardly looks like a girl, she has…

For those of you who are cultured, you know that line is from Lion King. If not, perhaps you’re familiar with the phrase Hakuna Matata (what a wonderful phrase). Hakuna Matata ain’t no passing craze. It means no worries, for the rest of your days. It’s my problem free philosophy. Hakuna Matata. I’m not sorry. I had to do it! A lot has happened in the past month. There have been race issues, nude photos leaking (gender issues), and inappropriate rape tweets (sexual issues). I’m going to keep my response short and simple. Why do these things matter? Race, gender, sexuality. Honestly, they shouldn’t. By that I mean, these are all important things. Many people have branches of their identity that stem from some or all of them. However, my race, gender, sexuality, and so forth should NOT BE A PROBLEM. They are not harmful to anyone and therefore should not be a problem. Perhaps the terms I’m putting this in are too simple, however I’m failing to understand any logic that claims they have the right to …